#this is literally the last ch of the romantic route and i love it | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

writingwhimsey · 3 years

Text

Romance with Mr. Right...hand Man Ch. 1

A/N: This is just a fanfic I am starting following Hideyoshi's romantic route ending. I hope it's something everyone can enjoy! This will be a multi-chapter fic and I'll be bouncing between it and my Shingen fic. I will hopefully be moving my Nobunaga and Mitsuhide fics over here from fanfiction as well soon.

Chapter 1

I found myself sitting in front of Nobunaga on his horse. His arms were on either side of me, holding the reins. We were in an open field outside of Azuchi. It had been a little over a year since I had traveled through time and been living in the Sengoku with the Oda forces.

Mitsuhide and Masamune were on either side of us. We had a small portion of the Oda army behind us. On the opposite side of the field at the head of his own army was the love of my life, Hideyoshi. He was flanked by Ieyasu and Mitsunari, with their own portion of the Oda forces behind them.

I can't believe I agreed to go along with this. Granted it's not like I was truly given a choice in the matter. I thought to myself.

"You seem rather tense, Ava." Nobunaga observed, though there was a smile on his face.

"Oh, you know, just wondering why this is all necessary?" I replied, my tone a bit disgruntled.

Nobunaga grinned at me. "It is the only way." He answered.

I let out a sigh as I turned to look at Hideyoshi across the field. We were close enough I could see the determined look on his face and noticed when he leaned over to discuss something with Mitsunari or Ieyasu, but we weren't close enough for me to hear what was being said.

"Ava, aren't you the least bit curious as to how determined Hideyoshi is about all of this?" Mitsuhide asked, his tone teasing. "What lengths he will go to?"

"I would think you would be excited that he was willing to do this in the first place." Masamune added.

"I mean...it is definitely impressive." I replied. "But I also know how much he's going to be hating this the entire time."

"Don't worry, this was my idea. I will hold nothing against him when this is over." Nobunaga replied.

"The rest of us won't ever let him live it down though." Masamune replied grinning. "That is assuming none of us run off with the prize."

I rolled my eyes and sighed once again. My thoughts then turned to the events that led us to where we all stood right now.

Three days ago...

I was going around the room of the great hall, carrying a bottle of sake and pouring for everyone. We were having a banquet to celebrate the anniversary of Nobunaga surviving the Hono-ji incident.

"Ava." Nobunaga had said just as I was about to go join Hideyoshi.

"Uh...yeah?" I asked. "Were you needing a refill?"

"I would not say no." Nobunaga replied. "But you should also allow me to pour for you. This banquet is as much about celebrating you as it is me."

"I don't..." I began to protest.

"Without you saving me that night, we would not all be here now. So, come drink with me a moment." He said.

"Uh...alright." I reluctantly agreed. I wanted to go be with Hideyoshi, but I knew that even he would tell me I had better get up there to follow Nobunaga's orders. Hideyoshi was basically the president of the Nobunaga fan club.

I made my way up to the dais and sat by Nobunaga and filled his cup. He handed me another one and then poured for me. "Thank you." I said.

"You have earned it and proven yourself." He told me. "This haori coat you made is excellent as well. I commend your work."

I couldn't help but to smile. I always felt proud when my work was complimented. "Thank you." He had commissioned the haori from me a couple of weeks ago and I had put a lot of work into it.

"You know, you should share a drink with the rest of us." Masamune spoke up. "We want to celebrate the brave lass who saved our lord as well."

"Why do you always say we like you're including me?" Ieyasu grumbled.

"Because you're just as happy to have Ava around as the rest of us, lad." Masamune replied.

So, I ended up not getting to go join Hideyoshi and drinking with everyone. I planned for just one drink with each of them and then I would join Hideyoshi. Hopefully I could catch Nobunaga in a good enough mood that I'd be able to go home with Hideyoshi to his manor tonight.

What I did not realize at the time, was that everyone was enjoying the game they had stared. They were playing keep away with me and Hideyoshi. What I was also unaware of, was that Mitsuhide had manipulated Hideyoshi into drinking quite a bit more than he normally would. Hideyoshi was not the most composed drunk. When drinking he would speak much more freely than normal.

"Alright, Ava, it is my turn to share a drink with you." Mitsuhide said, taking my hand and pulling me to sit beside him.

"Only one drink." I said, remembering the last time I had drank with Mitsuhide. It was seriously the worst hangover the next day.

Mitsuhide grinned at me. "Why, my dear little seamstress, are you worried about what will happen if you drink with me?"

"I am not wanting the hangover from hell again." I replied. "Your alcohol tolerance isn't human."

"What if I promise to take it easy on you?" Mitsuhide asked, leaning in close.

"That's it!"

I jumped at the sound of Hideyoshi's voice. He was then coming over to sit beside me, wrapping an arm around me and pulling me close. "Hideyoshi?" I asked, looking up at him.

"I will not have the lot of you taking all of Ava's time. I will not stand for this anymore." Hideyoshi boldly declared.

"Are you challenging us for our dear little sister?" Mitsuhide asked, his voice teasing.

"As the man who loves her, yes I am." Hideyoshi answered. "And not just tonight. I am going insane not having her by my side every night."

My breath caught in my throat as I looked up at the man I loved. "Hideyoshi...what...are you saying?" I asked.

Those warm golden eyes focused on me. "Ava, I can't stand the thought of another night not having you come home with me. I want you to live with me and to be my wife."

I felt the tears stinging my eyes and the smile tugging my lips. "Oh...Hideyoshi!"

"That is quite the bold declaration, Hideyoshi." Nobunaga's deep voice came from his seat.

We all turned to look at him. "It is the truth." Hideyoshi replied. "If Ava will have me, I want to take her home and make her my wife."

"Have you forgotten, Hideyoshi?" Nobunaga replied, an amused smile on his face.

"My...Lord?" Hideyoshi asked.

"Ava is my treasured little sister." Nobunaga answered. "You truly intend to take her from me?"

"I...Lord Nobunaga...it's already been too long. I can't take it another day." Hideyoshi replied, looking Nobunaga in the eye.

Holy cats! He's...he's actually challenging Nobunaga for me?! I felt a swirl of conflicting emotions in my chest at this moment.

"You believe you are the best man for her?" Nobunaga asked.

"I will do everything to see to her happiness." Hideyoshi answered.

"How far are you willing to go for Ava?" Nobunaga asked.

"Uh...what...what are you trying to say, my lord?" Hideyoshi asked, confused.

"You have challenged me for her. You've made quite a bold declaration, Hideyoshi." Nobunaga replied. "Would you fight for her?"

"What kind of question is that? Of course I would." Hideyoshi answered.

Nobunaga's grin became devilish at this. "Then it is settled."

"What exactly is settled, Nobunaga?" I found myself asking. Is he agreeing to letting me finally move in with Hideyoshi...and then us planning our wedding? I thought with cautious excitement.

"Hideyoshi, you will prove your resolve to take my precious little sister from me." Nobunaga declared. "In three days time, I will have the perfect challenge for you."

"You name it and I will meet the challenge." Hideyoshi declared.

"You shall face me in battle." Nobunaga declared.

I am pretty sure my jaw hit the floor as Hideyoshi's eyes widened. "L-lord Nobunaga?"

"If you truly wish to make Ava your wife, you shall face me in battle." Nobunaga repeated. "We will work out the details over the next few days."

I looked at Hideyoshi. I half expected him to back down at the thought of fighting Nobunaga. There's no way...right? I should probably say something. Take it off of Hideyoshi. I thought, though I couldn't deny that a part of me was holding back, hoping he would respond and accept the challenge. "Nobunaga, come on, this is a bit ridiculous. Besides, you didn't wait to hear my answer. You spoke up before I really had the chance."

"Because I already know your answer." Nobunaga replied. "But that is not what is important here. Hideyoshi, will you fight for Ava?"

Hideyoshi's eyes met mine. He gave me a smile and then turned to Nobunaga, determination set on his face. "Alright, if that's what it takes, then yes, I will face you in battle, my lord."

A devilishly gleeful smile came to Nobunaga's face. "Good. I look forward to this."

Now...

And that was the story of how we ended up here. The details had been worked out that Hideyoshi would face Nobunaga in battle essentially for my hand in marriage. Nobunaga had declared that Ieyasu and Mitsunari would be Hideyoshi's subordinates in the battle, while Mitsuhide and Masamune were his to command.

The rules were relatively simple. It was similar to an actual fight, but the goal was not that anyone would be hurt. Or only minor injuries were allowed. Hideyoshi was to command his forces in an effort to take me from Nobunaga. He literally had to physically take me from Nobunaga and run off with me.

Of course this meant that he would have to fight Nobunaga and more than likely try to knock him off of his horse or something. I knew that is that happened, Hideyoshi would be devastated at having caused any injury no matter how minor to Nobunaga. I knew he would also be terrified of hurting me in the process.

"Don't worry little mouse, no one will get hurt." Mitsuhide told me from his place beside Nobunaga and me. "Especially you. You are our most precious little sister after all."

I found myself rolling my eyes once again.

"I am very much looking forward to this." Nobunaga said, smiling like a little kid.

"Why exactly is that?" I asked.

"To see exactly how Hideyoshi plans to pull this off." He answered. "It has been quite amusing to see him change since being with you."

I looked up at the man whose arms I was currently trapped in. I raised a brow at him. "I don't think I've really changed him that much." I replied.

"He values his life now." Nobunaga replied. "He is no longer willing to throw it away. That is something I am happy to finally see."

"What else are you hoping to see today?" I asked.

Nobunaga smiled. "I am just looking to have a bit of amusement today." He answered, but I could tell that that wasn't the truth. Though I am not sure what he was really searching for, I was certain that it was more than amusement. Something told me that Nobunaga really did care about Hideyoshi and this was somehow his way of proving a point or trying to get Hideyoshi to learn something new.

It was a few moments later that a the war cries sounded. Horses and soldiers from both sides took off. I found myself gripping the saddle to keep steady as Nobunaga kicked our horse into a run. I was preparing myself to be able to jump off and into Hideyoshi's arms at a moment's notice. I didn't want him to have to do all of the work when it came to this mock battle. I also wanted to try and make this as easy on him as possible. I knew what Nobunaga meant to him. So the fact that he was willing to participate in this mock battle was major and showed how much he truly loved me. Even if it was something he agreed to when he was drunk.

I hope this ends well. I thought as I kept my eyes open and waited for my opportunity. Though you know this is the stuff most girls dream of...I mean I literally have men fighting over me right now. I couldn't help the rueful smile that came to my lips at that thought. Though no matter who the victor in this mock battle is, my heart will always be Hideyoshi's.

Read the next chapter below!

https://writingwhimsey.tumblr.com/post/659310015236177920/romance-with-mr-righthand-man-ch-2

#ikesen #ikesen hideyoshi #romance #fanfic #chapter 1

7 notes · View notes

wizardessheart-sideb · 5 years

Video

youtube

The latest episode is here! Below the cut is a transcription

HEWWO!

Hello everyone, welcome to Royal Magic Academy Radio, a podcast about Wizardess Heart. I’m your host, Mari. So uh. YEAH, we had a lot of big stuff happen since the last episode, so let’s get on with the show.

GAMING NEWS

Event-wise, we got a joint Romance Point slot that brings back some of Elias and Luca’s past stories AND CGs. So it’s a combo of two guys AND stories and CGs. There’s a new star collection event, All Aboard the Mystery Express. I have to say I never expected to get a mystery train event, but I’ll take it. I think it’s a good theme and I like Hugo’s story. I haven’t read any of the other stories because I don’t care about them and I don’t have Klaus’ yet.

We got Joel’s sequel! His main route early bird is still running, so we’re getting like Double Joel. Or in my case, triple Joel since I’m transcribing his main route so. It’s Joel season y’all.

We also now have quite a few new features. After years of asking, we now have a greet all button. While I’m glad this is a thing since a lot of people are happy about it, I personally don’t use it because using greet all and then sending people messages for that extra 20 Lune is a nightmare. I did a time comparison using my personal account and then the one I use to screen record stuff for Ceragon Dubs, and if you use greet all and then go into your friend list to send messages it’s a lot longer. But it wasn’t as long as how much time I spent screen recording, logging in and out of facebook accounts, and video editing and breaking out my phone and screen recording that for a timer.

There’s also a new feature on consumable items. I mean, that’s the best way to describe it. So basically, there’s now a thing called limited time items. As the name suggests, they’re only available for about 15 days, and if you don’t use them in that time, they disappear. So far, we’ve seen this with Story Tickets and Muffins. I imagine it will probably go over to the other snack items, but I don’t know about the others consumables. Time will tell, I suppose.

FUTURE EVENTS/SPECULATION

Okay so since we’re now getting the next batch of sequels, if we’re going in the order of the poll, Hiro’s is next. That is all. Although I do think we're gonna get season 10 first. But yeah, Hiro's should be next. Sequel-wise, at least.

CALL AND RESPONSE

And now we have the long awaited response portion of call and response! Everyone’s favorite segment where I have no clue what I’m doing, I take shit from Love Live!, and I am met with the realization if I were an idol my call and response would be the worst because I can’t think of anything, which is why we make Love Live references. Ngl I feel like my call would be like “Who’s my favorite audience member?” and then the audience is like “me!” and I fake mishearing them and I’m like “memes?!” and then we all dab or some shit because that’s my brand. Dabbing at everything. Okay but yeah so. I asked you guys to rewrite character bios so. Let’s have some FUNNNNN.

Okay, and I sort have things in the correct places so I can just read them. I mean "sort of" because I have to go through DMs and stuff, but... Okay so our first one is from @nadia-the-wizardess. And hers is for Hugo which of course it is, I love you dude. So she submitted... And I'm not gonna try to be a complete ham. I'm gonna try and have some dignity while reading these. "Friend or foe? The masked man seemed to be at every turn, either helping us or using us to his advantage. He claims he has come from the future to help put us on the correct path and change our tragic destiny. We still don't know what Hugo is truly planning, but despite all this, I've decided to put my faith in him and join him in his journey through time and save his-- our future!" And then her sidenote, "(God I hope I did this right sbhdnsns)." You did! You are all good and I - you know I love Hugo, probably… well… probably just as much as you. Hugo is my best boy, so.

Okay, so. God, this segment is cursed. I… This is literally the fifth time I;ve tried recording this one little story because like my mic just keeps like cutting out. I need a brand new mic like this one is not cutting it anymore but anyway. So this call and response has a funny story behind it. So essentially like when I first get responses, I don't necessarily read them carefully at first, like I'm just kind of aware. Like “okay, like some.” So when I first did the call and response a while ago, um, I was vaguely aware that I had two and one was from Nadia and the other was from an anon. And so obviously like I push it back and then, uh, me and my friend have been chatting, who's not Nadia. That's the only identity clue I will give you cuz I'm not going to say who it is but um, *laughs* she's gonna be so mad though. So anyway, so me and my friend were talking and she was like, “Oh hey, I have a question so ‘theoretically’” in quotes, if she had sent a call and response answer to me like, would she have to make a new one or like whatever, like trying to figure out what's going on. And I said like honestly I’ll use whatever you give me because I do literally like whatever people spend in and I will use so it's a free-for-all, like I’ll use anything.

And then she told me that was good because she forgot what she, and I air quote this, “theoretically” sent. And I was like, “Well you”... This was before I checked my inbox cuz I was like, “Oh, I’ll just go in and like copy paste in and put in our chat. So I was just like “You could always ask me to send you things” like if you don't remember what you do - andthis goes for anyone. Like if you send a response by not DM by like inbox and you don't remember what you wrote like you can totally just message me and be like, “Hey I sent this, I don't remember how I worded it exactly I'm worried that I messed it up could you please tell me what it was” and like totally go ahead and do that like I don't mind. So then, you know, like I went into my inbox so I was like, “Okay let's see what she said” and um. This is what she said. “Call and response for Sigurd (Feat. Leslie) - Sigurd's the only student who can equally terrify the staff at Olive Garden along with Klaus. With his overbearing obsession and appetite for any sort of pasta, he's best known as Klaus' right-hand man when it comes to needing a bud for their 2 for $12 appetizer promotions.” Not sponsored by Olive Garden. “I hear even though he currently majors in Magical Creature Taming, rumor has it he'll be switching to Culinary Magic for... ‘Reasons.’ Personally, I'd rather not know,” Same. “but if you insist...*Shrug”

And anyway this is cursed and yeah, I can understand why my friend did not want to like, confront me about this. Oh God, RIP. We got through it, she's fine.

So our next one is from @uraminowaltz and she has two and they're both for Klaus because of course they are. I should just rename this segment to me roasting my friends. Okay, so her serious Klaus one is: “Likes: Tea, sweets, challenging games, cooking. Dislikes: Coffee, Zeus,” Girl me too. “Irresponsibility, abuse of authoritative power. Hobby: Cooking, inventing magical tools. Skills: Unintentional romantic gestures, endurance with magic, WORKAHOLIC.” Yeah I-I felt that. I felt that. So the joke one: “Likes: His giant personal ring of 500 different keys. Dislikes: Losing his keys.” Also same. “Hobby: Making copies of his keys. Skills: Losing his keys PLEASE HELP HIM FIND HIS KEYS HERE IS A CROWDFUNDING LINK TO FIND HIS KEYS IT'S FUNDED AT 60%.” Oh, Klaus. Klaus. Honestly though when they did the Klaus II profile and it was like, thing that worries him, uh, losing, uh, lost his keys I was like goddammit. Like it just… It was one of those things that I didn’t realize was on brand for him, but then once I read it and saw it, I was like “Oh God yeah yeah that's his brand that's his... poor baby, that's his brand.”

Okay so our second to- Actually, it might second-to-last I haven't checked the notes of that post so I guess I have to do that too. Okay so anyway, @sigurdcurtisholdsmegentle said… uh, did some, and you're going to be surprised who it was for. It was for Sigurd. So their joke one and they said… Their personal note for this was “Please actually kill me for this.” No I will not. You must atone for your sins. Uh... “Likes: Pasta. Dislikes: People who don't like pasta. Hobby: Naming spices in the pasta sauce. Skill: Cooking Pasta.” I'm very glad you did not put anything else because I would not want to read that out loud and that is NOT a challenge to anybody *laughs* So their serious one is: “Likes: Jazz music, Puns, The Rain, Make up.” Hell yeah. “Dislikes: His father, Himself, Ch… *laughs* CHICA,” I… We’re going for it. We’re going for the discourse and controvershy. The controversy. I can’t talk. Uh. Also dislikes “Blood. Hobby: Writing letters, Playing trumpet, Playing chess with Klaus. Skill: Decorating, Well timed exits, Running on little to no sleep.” Poor baby. But yeah I mean yeah. That's him. So the next one is... that they did was for Mel so it's “Likes: Apple cider, Plants, Perserving wildlife. Dislikes: Time Magic, Sol Felia,” It’s feh-lia not fee-lia, right? Like it’s not… I don’t feel like it’s fee-lia? I’m like pretty sure it’s feh-lia. Okay, it’s feh-lia now, I’m making the executive decision. It’s feh-lia now. Uh. “Oranges, Explaining.” God I felt that like whenever I reread Sigurd’s route, Mel's like “I don't want to explain” I’m like please shut up stop it like please, just explain. Good God. Like you're just making more trouble for yourself my dude. “Hobby: Sleeping in the greenhouse, Reading lore. Skill: Botany, Making wands, Flower” Oh my God, flower arrangements, that’s so cute. Oh my God, I love that actually. Like, I mean honestly like I liked all of them, but like that's so cute. That was super cute, I really like that one.

So, I don't think my call and response post had any notes. Except from people just liking it but I'm going to double-check cuz I'm not 100% sure.

Okay so it's time for our final call and response which will be my own. I literally have to bring up the my inspiration, my muse to *laughs* to do this. Okay so like, my whole inspiration for this prompt was the fact that like Azusa never got like an actual profile. Like it's all just question marks and um, we're going to fix that. And that's why I got the idea like, “oh that be really funny like everyone just rewrote things.” Let's go for the serious one first. That way I can do that and then I can goof. So my serious profile rewrite for Azusa and I did not write this beforehand, so… yeah! Let’s see… “Likes: his brother. Dislikes: hypocrites, himself.” Uh, that’s such a… *laughs*

That's such a mood. Every dude in this game is like self-loathing and some way. But I mean that's just how people are so I mean I guess it's not actually like that much of a stretch. But anyway. “Hobby… ………” Uh. You know, it's bad that I can't think of anything not just because like, I can't think of anything, but because he's one of my favorites and I'm like, “does he even have hobbies” like I'm not - I'm sure he does but I mean… “Hobby: telling Randy to shut up” I don't know. Uh, “Skill: onmyojutsu” just because we're basic and that was our serious one. And now for the fun one.

Um…. okay so, “Likes: his family. Dislikes: people. Hobby: ……….. you know. Skill: being a jackass” I don't know. I'm not even going to try and improv a description. Oh, poor Azusa. Although I do wonder if- when he gets a sequel, I wonder if that… I wonder if they’re gonna, like, continue making the, you know, kinda like additional info thing or if we’re gonna get like, a real profile for- Okay like, okay. I would be so fucking mad if like once he gets his sequel and they put like his like, um, like second profile thing and it's literally just all *laughs* it’s all question marks. I would be so fucking mad. I’d be like “come on PLEASE. PLEASE DON’T DO THIS TO US.” Okay anyways, so that was call and response. Thank you guys for coming on this journey with me. Um, that was fraught with recording problems and I'm not looking forward to transcribing this, but sometimes you just got to do what you got to do.

ROUTE REVIEW

All right, so it’s time to review Sigurd’s route. His route had come out a bit before I started playing, and I vaguely remember getting a notification about it, but honestly I don’t remember too much about it. I was playing Yukiya at the time and while I thought Sigurd was cute, I was too lost in the Yukiya sauce to do anything but Yukiya-related stuff.

It honestly took me a while to play Sigurd’s route, like i played it for the first time last year, and like. I just genuinely enjoy Sigurd so much. Like he’s such a funny guy and so sweet. Falling in love with a guy like that just feels natural. And the story handled it super well too. The story balances plot and romance very well and they feel very cohesive.

The plot was really solid, with enough ends left to get resolved in Mel’s route. But then again, I’m very partial to this mystery series and no, I’m not just saying that bc I cosplay sol maiden!Liz. It’s a good story idea, bront. Not to mention there’s like, a lot of fluff in Sigurd’s. I mean it absolutely has upsetting moments, but it’s just. Okay like I don’t mean to get on a soapbox or whatever, but it’s just. I feel like my culture gets inundated with these images of cishet relationships where men don’t treasure their partners. I acknowledge it’s toxic and it’s a serious problem and all, trust me this sort of thing is something I’ve taken enough classes on to consider it an unofficial minor, but like I’M SO TIRED OF SEEING THESE CISHET MEN BE JERKS TO THEIR CISHET GIRLFRIENDS. Like really, we’re gonna romanticize a dude being a jerk to his girlfriend and not show the repercussions of this sort of behavior and act like it’s normal? Really? That’s what we’re gonna do? So like any media that portrays a guy as being loving and smitten and affectionate with his partner is just. That’s so refreshing and so WONDERFUL like I eat that stuff UP. Like it’s so clear Sigurd is so taken with the MC and it’s just like hot chocolate on a cold day.

So yeah the plot’s good and Sigurd is just. Wonderful. But I also love how much lore we got in this route. We got country names, continent names, what sort of extra curriculars the academy has. Even some Goldstein lore. In my opinion, the best routes usually have some hella cool lore details and this route had a lot.

And this is a minor thing but. As someone who was raised with their cousins and stuff, they just nailed the cousin interactions between Klaus and Sigurd. I have a cousin who, as of now actually since birthdays, is the same age as me, although usually I’m older. My cousin and I mess with each other all the time and he bullies me constantly. I’m just kidding, I’m definitely the Sigurd to his Klaus. And like Sigurd and Klaus, we actually play a lot of games together, or play the same game at once. We’re both really into video games and his latest hobby is bullying my brand new Fire Emblem husband Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd. But in all seriousness, the game handled then well and the only way they could’ve made it more realistic is if they kept poking each other and making weird noises at each other. I mean, do you REALLY have a cousin if you don’t greet them by screeching like a pterodactyl?

Typing this all out makes me realize how weird my cousin and I are.

Okay but anyway. This route is very good and Sigurd is just an absolute doll. I highly recommend reading.

BYE BYE!

And that’s it for us today!! Thank you guys for tuning in this week. I’m sorry this episode is late. I was going to record it yesterday but something happened and basically made me give up on doing anything I wanted to do yesterday. But anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this episode and hopefully next episode will be on time!! With that, have a great week! This is Mari, signing off.

#wizardess heart #shall we date wizardess heart #wizardess heart+#shall we date wizardess

6 notes · View notes

probably-writing-something-blog · 5 years

Text

A line-by-line analysis of “The Archer” by Taylor Swift

Hello! Taylor released “The Archer” yesterday literally out of nowhere (love her for it, though) and ever since hearing it, I’ve wanted to sit down and really analyze it. I had a free moment today, so I did just that, and here it is. (I’m doing a “read more” cut because this is so long.)

“Combat/I’m ready for combat.”

Pretty simple, and the meaning is there. She’s ready to fight. As the song goes on, we’ll find out what she’s fighting for or against. Let’s keep going.

“I say I don’t want that/but what if I do?”

If you look at this from the last line, then she could be referring to combat/fighting. “I say I don’t want [to fight], but what if I do?” Which then alters the meaning of the first lines. She says she doesn’t want to fight – fighting in a general sense, fighting against herself/someone else, fighting for herself/someone else – maybe because it’s too stressful or maybe because in the past she has never won.

But then she says, “What if I [want to fight]?” What if she still wants to fight for herself, despite how it’s gone in the past? What if she wants to fight for someone else, despite how it’s gone in the past, despite her reputation? We can assume she’s talking about Joe here, sure, because we know he’s her boyfriend, but she also said this album is going to be the romantic side of everything in life, so that’s why I’m showing the different angles that this can be interpreted.

“‘Cause cruelty/wins in the movies/I’ve got a hundred thrown out speeches I almost said to you.”

Cruelty and revenge and everything around the two make for good movies. Everyone loves drama (“I swear I don’t love the drama/It loves me”); it’s just a fact of how we are. But here she’s saying, that stuff wins in the movies. It doesn’t win out here, in real life. We know Taylor and we know she doesn’t have a single mean bone in her body. Being cruel is the last thing she ever wants to be. Cruelty doesn’t win.

She writes what she wants to say to the person. Because of the line before this one, we can assume these speeches could’ve been anywhere from “I have to say goodbye” speeches to “What are you doing? How are you still around?” speeches to “I love you so much” speeches. There are so many routes.

“Easy they come/Easy they go/I jump from the train/I ride off alone.”

These lines. Okay.

Friends, relationships, whoever – “Easy they come/Easy they go” – She’s saying it’s always been so easy for people to come and go in her life. Easy maybe in the sense of she thinks she isn’t extraordinary enough for them to want to stay, and easy maybe in the sense that it never hurts them to come and go as quickly as they do.

She jumps from the train, she rides off alone. This gave me the image of maybe a western or even science-fiction movie. Jumping from a fast-moving train, presumably because enemies were on the train or the train wasn’t going in the direction they wanted to go. She rides off alone, she’s the only one not wanting to be on the train anymore. She’s on her own again.

“I never grew up/It’s getting so old.”

I’ve seen a few people make comparisons to her song “Never Grow Up” and that alone has made me emo, but I think these two lines are so important.

On the reputation stadium tour, Taylor sang “Never Grow Up” and if I remember correctly, she shifted the lyrics to something along the lines of, “I know you have to grow up,” which was sad on its own. But hearing this song and these lines adds an entirely different feeling.

She never grew up, not really. She’s been in the industry since she was so young. I bet she feels almost like she didn’t really have a true childhood or adolescence period, and it makes sense.

She never got the chance to grow up. She just had to do it. She didn’t get to experience it as a process, she just had to be grown up and have a presence all of the sudden. No process, just be. And it’s getting old. She never had the chance to a “normal” coming of age period, and she misses that.

“Help me hold onto you.”

I’ll come back to this line, for sure.

“I’ve been the archer/And I’ve been the prey.”

She’s been the one to shoot her arrows before. To attack, to fight. But she’s also been the attacked, the hunted.

“Who could ever leave me darling…but who could stay?”

This line hits especially because for me, I see the first half of it as almost a small bit of confidence. That, “Who could ever leave someone like me? Who would want to?” And then in the second half, she remembers why. She remembers her life and how her past has been and she says, “Who could stay?” Because (and I know she’s talked about this before and said this) who would want to deal with the life she has? Who would want this? Who would volunteer for this?

“Dark side/I search for your dark side/But what if I’m alright right here?”

She’s seen the dark side of many people. I have too, so this I relate especially to. Having something good only for it to turn at what seems like the tick of a second. All of the sudden, it’s not as good as it was. And now that things are good, it makes sense for her to be searching for the bad, to be untrustworthy of the good because she’s seen the good turn bad too many times. She’s searching for the dark side, but what if there isn’t one? And what if she doesn’t want to search for it anymore? What if she’s content, right here? What if she’s finally content just letting the good things be?

I think it’s really powerful that she uses “What if?” because that shows that while she is beginning to be okay with it, there’s still that fear. She still has to wonder that this is just another time where the rug is about to be ripped out from beneath her feet. She wants to believe this is good, that there is no dark side to search for, but what if there is?

“And I cut off my nose just to spite my face/And hate my reflection for years and years.”

“Cutting off the nose to spite the face” is an idiom, perfectly used here with the literal line on the second half saying that after doing that, she hated her reflection. The expression actually refers to “a needlessly self-destructive over-reaction to a problem” which is something I also heavily relate to (I got the definition from Wikipedia).

Maybe she’s overreacted in the past. Cut things off too quickly with someone or locked herself away from any prospect of love (friendship or romantic) because she was too scared. Refusing love is self-destructive – something I’ve done. It’s cutting off your nose to spite your face, it’s tearing yourself down without needing to, it’s seeing a problem and thinking it can’t exist if you cut off every single avenue it could exist down, regardless of whether or not some are positive or that it could lead to something positive. It’s destroying yourself in the name of protecting yourself.

“I wake in the night/I pace like a ghost/The room is on fire/Invisible smoke.”

I’ve seen a couple people already refer to this as a line about anxiety, and I completely agree. Anxiety can make it seem like the room is literally on fire, when it isn’t (“invisible smoke” choking you, making it hard to breathe when there’s perfectly good air all around you to breathe). It can keep you up at night or it can wake you up in the middle of the night with no hopes of falling back asleep. It can keep you awake for days, depriving you of sleep, causing a ghostly appearance. It can do all of these evil things, and Taylor perfectly explained them here.

“And all my heroes die all alone/Help me hold onto you.”

A fear that my anxiety personally stems from is dying alone, so that’s why this line hits me hard. She doesn’t want to die alone. But she’s lost so many people. She needs him (assuming Joe) to help her hold onto him because she doesn’t want to die all alone.

“They see right through me/Can you see right through me?”

“They” can be referring to us, the fans, or it can be the media. Either way, the way she sings these lines only leads me to believe she doesn’t mean it in a positive way. It almost reminds me of Imposter Syndrome, where you’re always afraid you’re going to be found out. (Wikipedia describes it as “a psychological pattern in which an individual doubts their accomplishments and has a persistent internalized fear of being exposed as a "fraud".”) That you’re not really who everyone thinks you are, or even who you think you are. And she’s worried that Joe can see right through her, can see that she’s not really who everyone says, or that she’s not as sweet as everyone thinks, or as loving, or as creative or intelligent. She thinks “they” see right through her, and she worries if he can, too.

“I see right through me.”

This has to be my favorite line from the entire song. This really rings true with Imposter Syndrome that I just mentioned. She sees right through herself. And the way she practically screams this line hurts my heart because I hear the exact emotion she’s feeling. I’ve felt it before, standing in front of my mirror at God-awful hours in the night. I see through myself. I don’t think I’m as smart or kind or talented or creative as everyone around me says I am. I see right through me. Right through me.

“All the king’s horses/All the king’s men/Couldn’t put me together again.”

These lines are from the English nursery rhyme “Humpty Dumpty” (I knew I recognized them somewhere!). And if you remember the story, Humpty fell from the wall. Shattered his shell as he hit the ground. The king’s horses and men couldn’t make Humpty who he was before. She’s saying she fell, shattered as she hit the ground, and no one could put her back together again, no one could make her who she used to be (“I’d like to be my old self again/but I’m still trying to find it”) no matter how hard they tried.

“‘Cause all of my enemies/started out friends/Help me hold onto you.”

This shows more of the worry of good turning bad. All of her enemies used to be her friends, or who she thought were her friends. They used to have good times, and then it all changed. But she doesn’t want that to happen with Joe. She wants him to stay good (let’s be honest, we all know he will; he’s an angel), she doesn’t want him to be another friend turned enemy. She wants to hold onto him and the good thing they have going.

“Who could stay? You could stay.”

This is the most touching turning point in the song. She’s asking herself that famed question. Who would want to stay? Who would want this? And then she’s remembering. Joe has stayed. He could stay. He could be the one to stay. All this time she’s been asking who, and it’s been you (him).

Alright, that is my line-by-line analysis. Just a reminder that this is all entirely my own speculation. The beauty of songwriting is that songs can be open to so many different interpretations, this is just what I hear when I listen to it xx.

#the archer #taylor swift #taylor swift lyrics #taylurking #taylor nation #a line by line analysis #lover #lover is out in a month babies #i'm so ready #this song is so beautiful #and my favorite so far #possibly my new all time favorite taylor song too #love ya girl xx.

7 notes · View notes